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Whistleblowing in the Swedish private sector - A legal framework in transition

Hanzén, Michaela LU (2017) HARH16 20162
Department of Business Law
Abstract (Swedish)
Uppsatsens huvudsakliga fokus är den pågående förändringen av regelverk gällande whistleblowing i Sverige. Syftet är att klargöra gällande rätt i Sverige för anställda i den privata sektorn genom ett överstatligt och nationellt perspektiv. En jämförelse och analys av de förändringar som kommer att ske med den nya lagen som förväntas träda i kraft januari 2017, vilken syftar till att skydda arbetstagaren mot repressalier från arbetsgivaren, kommer att göras. Betydelsen av en sådan undersökning är baserad på den osäkerhet en anställd idag står inför när denne påtalar missförhållanden inom en organisation.

Det finns ingen nuvarande explicit och direkt lag om whistleblowing i Sverige, vilket innebär att regleringen kring detta återfinns i... (More)
Uppsatsens huvudsakliga fokus är den pågående förändringen av regelverk gällande whistleblowing i Sverige. Syftet är att klargöra gällande rätt i Sverige för anställda i den privata sektorn genom ett överstatligt och nationellt perspektiv. En jämförelse och analys av de förändringar som kommer att ske med den nya lagen som förväntas träda i kraft januari 2017, vilken syftar till att skydda arbetstagaren mot repressalier från arbetsgivaren, kommer att göras. Betydelsen av en sådan undersökning är baserad på den osäkerhet en anställd idag står inför när denne påtalar missförhållanden inom en organisation.

Det finns ingen nuvarande explicit och direkt lag om whistleblowing i Sverige, vilket innebär att regleringen kring detta återfinns i olika rättskällor såsom ett flertal lagar och rättspraxis. Sverige erbjuder en viss grad av möjlighet till whistleblowing genom den grundläggande rättigheten i form av yttrandefrihet, men det begränsas av exempelvis arbetstagarens lojalitetsplikt gentemot arbetsgivaren. Vidare är skyddet mot repressalier i vissa fall lagstadgat reglerat, men i de flesta fall är skyddet obefintligt för den anställda.

Den osäkra rättsregleringen påverkar både den anställde, arbetsgivaren och samhället. Det kan uppstå en intressekonflikt mellan dem och när de anser whistleblowing legitim. En bedömning görs därför i varje enskilt fall. Den osäkra tolkningen av rättskällorna och intressekonflikten försvagar den anställdes förutsägelse av de möjliga utfall denne kan utsättas för, vilket kan hindra anställda att adressera missförhållanden inom en organisation. Den nya lagen kan dock öka modet för whistleblowing bland de anställda. (Less)
Abstract
This bachelor thesis focuses on the current legal framework transition in Sweden concerning whistleblowing. The aim is to clarify the legal framework today in Sweden for employees in the private sector through a supranational and national perspective. A comparison and analysis of possible changes that will occur with the new law, that is soon to be entered into force in Sweden, aiming to protect the whistleblower against reprisals from the employer, will be made. The significance of such investigation is based on the uncertainty an employee faces today in the disclosure of misconducts within an organisation.

There is no explicit and direct law concerning whistleblowing in Sweden, meaning that the regulations and directives are to be... (More)
This bachelor thesis focuses on the current legal framework transition in Sweden concerning whistleblowing. The aim is to clarify the legal framework today in Sweden for employees in the private sector through a supranational and national perspective. A comparison and analysis of possible changes that will occur with the new law, that is soon to be entered into force in Sweden, aiming to protect the whistleblower against reprisals from the employer, will be made. The significance of such investigation is based on the uncertainty an employee faces today in the disclosure of misconducts within an organisation.

There is no explicit and direct law concerning whistleblowing in Sweden, meaning that the regulations and directives are to be found in several legal sources, such as statutory law and case law. Sweden offers some degree of possibility to whistleblow through the fundamental right of freedom of expression, but it is restricted by e.g. the employee’s duty of loyalty towards the employer. Furthermore, the protection against reprisals is in some cases statutory regulated, but in most cases the protection is non-existent for the employee.

This uncertain framework affects both the employee, the employer and the society. There could be a constant conflict of interest between them and when they consider whistleblowing legitimate. An assessment is therefore made in every individual case. The uncertain interpretation of the legal sources and the conflict of interest may hinder many employees to address wrongdoings within an organisation, since it weakens the employee’s prediction of the possible outcomes of the action. Although, with a new law there is a possibility for an increased courage among the employees to whistleblow. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Hanzén, Michaela LU
supervisor
organization
course
HARH16 20162
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
the European Court of Human Rights., the European Convention on Human Rights, the right to criticism, reprisals, the duty of loyalty, the freedom of expression, whistleblowing, whistleblowing in the Swedish private sector
language
English
id
8899140
date added to LUP
2017-01-20 07:39:32
date last changed
2017-01-20 07:39:32
@misc{8899140,
  abstract     = {{This bachelor thesis focuses on the current legal framework transition in Sweden concerning whistleblowing. The aim is to clarify the legal framework today in Sweden for employees in the private sector through a supranational and national perspective. A comparison and analysis of possible changes that will occur with the new law, that is soon to be entered into force in Sweden, aiming to protect the whistleblower against reprisals from the employer, will be made. The significance of such investigation is based on the uncertainty an employee faces today in the disclosure of misconducts within an organisation. 

There is no explicit and direct law concerning whistleblowing in Sweden, meaning that the regulations and directives are to be found in several legal sources, such as statutory law and case law. Sweden offers some degree of possibility to whistleblow through the fundamental right of freedom of expression, but it is restricted by e.g. the employee’s duty of loyalty towards the employer. Furthermore, the protection against reprisals is in some cases statutory regulated, but in most cases the protection is non-existent for the employee. 

This uncertain framework affects both the employee, the employer and the society. There could be a constant conflict of interest between them and when they consider whistleblowing legitimate. An assessment is therefore made in every individual case. The uncertain interpretation of the legal sources and the conflict of interest may hinder many employees to address wrongdoings within an organisation, since it weakens the employee’s prediction of the possible outcomes of the action. Although, with a new law there is a possibility for an increased courage among the employees to whistleblow.}},
  author       = {{Hanzén, Michaela}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Whistleblowing in the Swedish private sector - A legal framework in transition}},
  year         = {{2017}},
}